First 'vital street' paved in Grand Rapids: See what road tax money will do next

GRAND RAPIDS, MI - The fresh asphalt on a short stretch of Buckley Street SE is smooth and dark. Sidewalk at the intersections is bumpy - in compliance with standards of the American with Disabilities Act - and flanked by new curb and gutter.

Grand Rapids residents and wage earners, see the first fruits of your new city streets tax.

"We've used an asset management approach to save this street before it became horrible," Deputy City Manager Eric DeLong said. "Now look at it. It's beautiful."

DeLong and other Grand Rapids administrators, along with some city commissioners and members of a Sustainable Streets Task Force, held a ceremonial ribbon-cutting Thursday, Aug. 7, to open the first road repaved with money from the income tax voters overwhelmingly approved in May. It's a short stretch of Buckley from a bit west of La Grave Avenue to Jefferson Avenue SE.

Paving also is underway nearby on stretches of Sheldon Avenue SE. Here's a list of what southeast Grand Rapids streets are next for paving. These streets in northeast Grand Rapids also are getting repaved, and City Commission this month is expected to approve a contract for roadwork on the West Side.

On Buckley, the work included milling off 1.5 inches of road surface and laying fresh asphalt, replacement of several sidewalk squares and installation of the ADA-compliant sidewalk ramps with curb and gutter.

Major overhauls of streets in really bad shape are planned in the coming years, said Rick DeVries, assistant city engineer.

"Your existing street (here on Buckley) is in pretty good shape. You're just preserving it (with this repaving)," he said. "This primarily preserves the investment."

The ADA-compliant sidewalk also makes the street accessible to wheelchair-users and more pedestrians, Mayor George Heartwell said.